Morgan Stanley Raises Akero Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKRO) Price Target to $96.00

Akero Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKRO) had its target price boosted by Morgan Stanley from $46.00 to $96.00 in a research report released on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. Morgan Stanley currently has an overweight rating on the stock.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. Canaccord Genuity Group lifted their price target on shares of Akero Therapeutics from $56.00 to $73.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Akero Therapeutics from $65.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, HC Wainwright lifted their price target on shares of Akero Therapeutics from $50.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Akero Therapeutics currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $61.57.

Akero Therapeutics Price Performance

Akero Therapeutics stock opened at $51.47 on Tuesday. Akero Therapeutics has a 12-month low of $15.32 and a 12-month high of $58.40. The stock has a market cap of $3.59 billion, a P/E ratio of -13.73 and a beta of -0.19. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $28.90 and a 200 day moving average price of $28.33. The company has a current ratio of 17.25, a quick ratio of 17.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05.

Akero Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKRO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, November 8th. The company reported ($1.05) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.90) by ($0.15). Sell-side analysts anticipate that Akero Therapeutics will post -3.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Catriona Yale sold 15,485 shares of Akero Therapeutics stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.62, for a total value of $505,120.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 74,158 shares in the company, valued at $2,419,033.96. The trade was a 17.27 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Patrick Lamy sold 925 shares of Akero Therapeutics stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.79, for a total transaction of $28,480.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 17,858 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $549,847.82. This represents a 4.92 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 257,620 shares of company stock valued at $8,076,127. 7.94% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in Akero Therapeutics by 21.6% in the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 2,511 shares of the company’s stock worth $71,000 after acquiring an additional 446 shares during the last quarter. Eastern Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Akero Therapeutics during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $100,000. Summit Financial Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Akero Therapeutics during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $205,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Akero Therapeutics during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $211,000. Finally, Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Akero Therapeutics during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $265,000.

Akero Therapeutics Company Profile

Akero Therapeutics, Inc, together with its subsidiary, engages in the development of treatments for patients with serious metabolic diseases in the United States. The company's lead product candidate is efruxifermin (EFX), which is in Phase 3 clinical trials that protects against cellular stress and regulates the metabolism of lipids, carbohydrates, and proteins throughout the body for the treatment of biopsy-confirmed metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH) patients.